10 Trailers That Misled You About Awesome Video Games

After being stuck in development for years, publishers Deep Silver decided that the upcoming zombie game Dead Island needed a trailer that would catch the world's attention. The job was given to Glasgow-based studio Axis Animation, who were granted a lot of creative freedom. The result was a three-minute short film that was unlike anything players had seen before.

The trailer centres on the final moments of a young girl as her family holiday descends into chaos, violence, and heartbreaking tragedy. Presented in reverse chronology and accompanied by a score of sombre strings and piano, this was an immensely moving work of art. It was so good that it won the prestigious Gold Lion award at Cannes.

This hauntingly affective trailer suggested that Dead Island would be an emotionally mature take on the zombie subgenre that wasn't afraid to tackle difficult themes. Upon its release, however, Dead Island turned out to be another game where players gleefully dismembered the undead with an array of melee weapons.

While the final product was the tonal opposite of its trailer, developers Techland nevertheless delivered a solid and endlessly entertaining zombie-slaying romp that would become the foundation for the equally excellent Dying Light.